plant-based comfort food

Swiss Chard and Chickpea Salad with Peanut Chili Dressing

A good peanut dressing is hard to find. I’ve had quite a few misses that left me slightly nauseous and thoroughly discouraged.

Not to get all Debbie Downer on you, but I had kind of given up on making a good Asian-y peanut sauce altogether. (SO sad, I know.)

But when the mood struck for something a little spicy, gingery and peanutty, I decided to give it another try. And FINALLY, I ended up with something I was pretty happy with.

I thinned out the sauce with a little warm water to use it as a salad dressing (the sauce recipe below ends up on the thick side) over a nice crunchy and fresh mix of carrots, Swiss chard, chickpeas and rice.

This sauce is also great spooned over warm steamed veggies and tofu or as a dipping sauce for rice paper rolls or dumplings. A little swirl of Sriracha with it is pretty killer too.

PEANUT CHILI DRESSING

1 tablespoon grape seed oil

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 red chili, finely chopped

1 tablespoon minced ginger

2 tablespoons all-natural peanut butter

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/4 cup coconut milk

1/4 cup water

juice of half a lime (extra to serve)

Heat oil in a small pan over a medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant, add chili and ginger and continue to cook for another minute, stirring.

Add peanut butter, soy sauce , coconut milk and water and reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring for about 10 minutes, allowing the mixture to thicken. If it becomes too thick, add more water 1 tablespoon at a time.

Allow to cool and add lime juice.

Serve over salad or as a dipping sauce for vegetables or dumplings.

SWISS CHARD AND CHICKPEA SALAD
(serves 2)

1/2 cup cooked chickpeas, rinsed and dried

1/2 cup brown rice

2 cups shredded Swiss chard

1 medium carrot, cut into ribbons with a vegetable peeler

2 green onions, thinly sliced (set some aside to garnish the salad)

1/4 cup chopped cilantro/coriander

1/4 cup chopped peanuts (or cashews)

Place all the ingredients besides the nuts together in a bowl with the dressing and mix well to combine. Top with reserved green onions, chopped nuts and extra cilantro. Spritz a little extra lime juice on there for extra punch.